Jordan LaMothe Blades’ Best 10 Custom Chef and Culinary Knives TO DATE in 2025

Here are ten of the best custom chef and culinary knives that I have made in my career to-date. Each of these knives is one-of-a-kind and exemplifies a combination of artistic form and functional design. All of these knives are already sold, but if you are interested in purchasing a unique piece of edged-art for your kitchen, please sign up for my newsletter for early access to any new work. 
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​“Rift” — I made this dramatic, K-tip gyuto for the Art of Cutlery exhibition, curated by EatingTools in October 2024. The blade was forged from 300-layer, carbon steel Damascus with an integral bolster. The handle was sculpted from camatillo rosewood and curly acacia with silver spacers and a Damascus rear bolster. The blade is convex-ground, for excellent all-round cutting performance, and at nearly 11 inches from heel to tip, it is ideal for an experienced chef with heavy cutting requirements.​​ ​

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​“Deep Roots” — This culinary knife features one of the most complex Damascus patterns I have ever made. The bold, high-contrast pattern adorns a supremely functional blade with an integral bolster and a symmetrical S-grind, for superior food release and ease of cutting. The handle and the saya (wooden sheath) of “Deep Roots” are both curly acacia wood with hand-sculpted flowing curves and contours. The butt-end of the handle also includes an inlay of African blackwood and stainless steel.

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Chinese Cleaver — The Chinese vegetable cleaver, or Cai Dao, is an excellent all-purpose knife, and can be used for nearly every kitchen task, from breaking down a chicken to mincing ginger and garlic, to transferring cut veggies from the cutting board to the wok. This unique Cai Dao elevates its form to the highest level, incorporating a reeded desert ironwood handle and an ornate chrysanthemum pattern in gold and silver koftgari. The blade of this Chinese cleaver is pattern-welded steel with an S-grind for improved cutting performance.​

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​​“Mojave” — This chef knife, with its bold “windmill” Damascus pattern and its spiral-fluted handle, won the award for ‘Best Chef Knife’ at the Atlanta Blade Show in 2024. “Mojave” has an S-ground blade and an integral bolster, and the desert ironwood burl handle terminates in a stainless steel cap with an African blackwood inlay.

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​Katana Sujihiki — This unique chef knife is made in the style of a sujihiki, or a Japanese slicing knife, but it is styled to resemble a katana. The blade for this knife was made from special hearth-melted steel, or ‘oroshigane,’ made by Emiliano Carrillo. Oroshigane is quite similar in both chemistry and appearance to the traditional Japanese steel used for their legendary swords. The handle is a complex composite construction of maple burl and synthetic ivory, and it includes metal fittings made from shibuichi (a copper/silver alloy) at the front and rear.

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Indian Rosewood Chef Knife — This chef knife is one of two knives that I made in India, while I was studying there on a Fulbright grant in 2022. The blade was forged from a mill ball, used in the concrete industry to crush stone. I forged this blade in a makeshift blacksmith shop, ground it on a stone wheel, and polished it by hand. The handle is reclaimed Rosewood from an old spice pounder, and the steel fittings are covered in thick, gold koftgari by my teacher, Sandeep Singh Chauhan.​

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​“Io” — Named for Jupiter’s volcanically active moon, this chef knife features a W2 carbon steel blade with a dramatic hardening line, or ‘hamon.’ The handle is made from fiery maple burl flanked with black walnut and silver spacers. Sterling silver tacks evoke distant orbiting bodies.​

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​Master Smith Gyuto — This elegant chef knife was one of the five knives that I submitted for judging to earn my Master Smith certification in the American Bladesmith Society in 2021. The blade features an active mosaic pattern in the Damascus steel, as well as an S-grind for food release and cutting performance. The handle is sculpted Turkish walnut with stainless steel and G10 spacers.​

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​Master Smith Sujihiki — This long slicing knife was also one of the five knives that I submitted for judging to earn my Master Smith certification in the American Bladesmith Society in 2021. The slender blade is forged from my “Mountain Riffle” pattern Damascus steel. The straight-octagonal handle is inspired by traditional Japanese chef knife handles, and it is made from curly Australian red gum, flanked by stainless steel and nickel silver spacers.​

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Go Mai Gyuto — This chef knife exemplifies a simpler form of elegance, achieved through careful design and premium materials. The blade is ‘go mai,’ or 5-layer steel with ApexUltra high-carbon steel in the core, 410 stainless steel in the jacket, and pure nickel in between. Apart from its attractive appearance, go mai steel offers improved corrosion resistance while retaining the benefits of a high-carbon steel edge. The handle for this knife is my classic “Farmstead” handle in maple burl, paired with a black Richlite bolster.​

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If you would like to commission a culinary knife to your specifications, you can start the process by filling out my contact form and sending me a description of what you are looking for.
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If you are looking for a limited edition culinary knife that has been hand forged and is ready to order, feel free to check out my shop.